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Army to beef up anti-tank missiles

Soldiers wait at the Sungshan Airport in Taipei yesterday after it was closed because of poor weather conditions brought by Typhoon Nari. The army has been the subject of criticism recently with some charging its planned purchase of Javelin anti-tank missiles will merely duplicate its weapons systems. PHOTO: CHU PEI-HSIUNG, TAIPEI TIMES

The army is to buy a new anti-tank missile from the US despite the fact that it already has a stockpile of similar weapons systems.

The new anti-tank missile is the medium-range portable Javelin, according to the Ministry of National Defense's budget for next year.

The army plans to buy 360 Javelin missiles and 40 launchers at a cost of around NT$1.4 billion. The purchase will be spread out over three years, according to the budget. The deal was approved by the US government in 2000.

The Javelin will become the newest entry in the army's stockpile of anti-tank weapons procured over the past two decades.

The army now has in its inventory over 10,000 anti-tank rockets and missiles as well as an unknown number of anti-tank artillery projectiles.

Eleven Jan (詹皓), a senior editor with Defense Technology Monthly magazine, said the army's stockpile exceeds its defense needs.

"The army does not need so many anti-tank weapons. Is it possible for China to land a large number of tanks on Taiwan? If the scenario does happen, it means Taiwan's air force and navy have been destroyed by the Chinese military. By that time, the army could not do much to reverse the situation," Jan said.

Overkill? * The army plans to buy 360 Javelin missiles and 40 launchers. * The purchase will be spread out over three years. * The army now has over 10,000 anti-tank rockets and missiles as well as an unknown number of anti-tank artillery projectiles. * Some analysts say the Javelin purchase is unnecessary.

"The reason why the army has purchased so many anti-tank weapons is the parochialism of the army leaders. Each army chief considers buying high-profile weapon systems as a key achievement during his term. This mentality has resulted in inconsistencies in the army's arms build-up plans. Each army chief thinks better of himself and does not want to continue plans left by his predecessors," he said.

Citing the French-made Apilas anti-tank rocket system as an example, Jan said the army has bought a lot of useless anti-tank weapons. The army bought the Apilas in 1997.

"The Apilas is too heavy and too large for a soldier to bear on his shoulder. It was designed for Westerners, who have larger and stronger builds. The army has admitted to the problem, but it insists the situation can be overcome through enhancing anti-tank troops' physical training," Jan said.

"The weapon system was ordered at a time when Taiwan had good relations with France because of the big-ticket weapon platforms such as the Mirage 2000-5 fighter plane and the Lafayette-class frigate that Taiwan bought from the European country. The deal may have been made for political reasons," he said.

The army's procurement of the anti-tank version of the Hellfire air-to-ground missile was also a bad decision, Jan said, since the anti-ship variant of the missile will better serve Taiwan's defense needs.

The Hellfire missile is carried on the army's AH-1W attack helicopter and OH-58D reconnaissance helicopter.

"The anti-ship variant of the missile will be more useful to the army because it can be used to sink ships carrying Chinese tanks across the Taiwan Strait. It can kill many tanks at the same time. The anti-tank version of the missile can be used against Chinese tanks only after they land on Taiwan. It can destroy only one target at a time," Jan said.
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